Ripples, Arc I: Fate

Chapter 2: Knives In The Dark


"You summoned us, Hokage?"

Minato had to fight not to frown openly as Danzo entered into his office alongside the two Elders; he had known it would be a long-shot reasoning with just the two of them alone, and having Danzo here to whisper in their ears would just make things that much more difficult.

"Yes, I did. Please have a seat, Elders; Danzo-san."

Danzo wasted no time in beginning, his mouth setting itself into a frown that was deeper than normal, even for him.

"I assume you brought us here to discuss the problem of the Uchiha, Namikaze," he grumbled. "I trust you've finally come to your senses regarding it?"

While Minato generally discouraged excessive formality towards him among the people he dealt with every day, there was something about the way Danzo addressed him that never failed to set his teeth grinding.

"If by that you mean I've come to a decision, Danzo-san," he said, glad that the honorific came out normally, "then yes. I have met with the Uchiha clan's head, and made them a proposal I believe they found satisfactory. One that doesn't resort to wholesale slaughter," he added, leveling a hard look at Danzo, who was completely unfazed.

"Oh, really?" Homura countered, his voice a mix of disbelief and disdain as his eyes hardened behind his glasses. "And what sort of concessions did you make to get Fugaku to consider this proposal of yours? Did you go as far as to kowtow in front of him?"

"I proposed to him," the Hokage replied evenly, ignoring the Elder's insult, "that the Uchiha be allowed back into Konoha proper, and that the head of the Police Force be given a seat on the Council."

"What!?" Koharu blurted out, her face twisting into a rare expression of open surprise. "Give the Uchiha power over how Konoha is run? Are you insane, boy?!"

"So you would prefer that every man, woman and child in their entire clan has their throat cut open, is that it?" Minato shot back, barely able to keep his tone from crossing over into a growl. "The Uchiha are some of the best warriors Konoha possesses, Elder. You seem to have no problem whatsoever with sending them out on our missions, but you think they deserve to have no say in their own fates as part of this village?"

"They made their choice, Hokage," Danzo countered evenly, his voice cold. "They plotted to rebel once, and such sentiments are not easily quelled once they emerge. If anything, the reintegration you suggest will simply allow the Uchiha to strike with greater ease than they otherwise might."

"Which assumes that they would want to strike at all, Danzo-san," the Hokage said firmly, not willing to give up an inch. "They all know that there's no way they could possibly succeed in pulling off an actual coup, not as long as I'm the Hokage. I'm confident that Fugaku Uchiha will give me word of his agreement to the pact sooner rather than later; like I said to him earlier today, we are recovering from a War, councilors. The last thing we need right now is internal strife, not while our enemies are no doubt rebuilding and waiting for a chance to strike back at us."

"Pretty words, Hokage," Homura said, his voice not carrying a single ounce of sincerity, "but I doubt I am alone in thinking that you underestimate the hatred the Uchiha bear the rest of Konoha. As long as they draw breath, they will be a threat to the security of the Village as a whole, and that is something I cannot allow."

"And as Hokage," Minato said, his fists clenching at his side unconsciously, "I can't allow you to sanction the destruction of an entire group of people based on nothing more than a suspicion, no matter how likely or unlikely it might be. I refuse to accept that what you three are proposing is the right way to end this conflict."

"Hokage," Koharu spoke up, her voice and expression back to normal following her earlier outburst, "I understand that you have not been yourself since your wife's death at the hands of the Nine-Tailed Beast, but that was almost a decade ago. Put your grief behind you, and do not let it affect a decision of this magnitude."

"This has nothing to do with Kushina, Elder," Minato replied tersely, his eyes narrowing, "and I find it insulting that you would use her as a means to question my ability to lead Konoha.

"Regardless of how strongly you three might feel about the threat the Uchiha present to the Village, as Hokage I, and I alone, have the final say in this matter. Under no circumstances are you to move against the Uchiha, unless they give us cause to do so themselves. That is all."

"Very well," Homura said, not bothering to bow before turning around and walking from the room. "I am disappointed in you, boy. Why Hiruzen chose you to be his successor, I will never know. Your heart is too soft."

Minato watched the three old ninja go, his stoic expression revealing none of his inner anger. As soon as he was sure he was alone, the Hokage let out a sigh that he was sure would have made Sarutobi-san proud.

"Am I doing the right thing here, Jiraiya-sensei?" he asked the empty room, wondering why it was that ninja were so content to hate and so unwilling to forgive.


"So, Danzo," Koharu said as the three of them sat alone in Danzo's office, "what exactly do you plan to do about this?"

Danzo smiled, a look in his one visible eye that bled malice.

"What do you think?" he asked. "I'm going to use ANBU to carry out the attack anyway, whether or not the Hokage supports it."

"But how?" Homura asked back, arching a gray eyebrow. "ANBU is under the direct supervision of the Hokage, and answers to no one else— not even to you."

Danzo's smile twisted into a superior smirk, one that sent a sudden shiver racing down the Elders' spines even though they knew he was on their side.

"Have you forgotten about 'Root', my old friend?"

"'Root'?" Koharu echoed, her voice skeptical. "The last I heard of your little pet division, Danzo, the Hokage had ordered it disbanded for violating the law."

"That is true," Danzo ceded, "but you do me a disservice, Koharu, in assuming that I did not indoctrinate my soldiers well enough for their loyalty to be absolutely unshakable. If I call, Root will answer. No matter the time or the place, they will come. And they will follow my orders to the letter, as I have trained them to do."

"And you are confident that they will be able to carry out this mission on their own?" Homura pressed, still unconvinced. "As the Hokage said, the Uchiha are famed for their prowess and tenacity in battle. They will not simply roll over and surrender to you, Danzo."

"Nor would I expect them to," the ancient ninja replied, his voice firm. "I will send in my absolute best soldiers, and I will take no chances. By sunrise tomorrow, the Uchiha clan will be nothing more than an unpleasant memory: of this, I can assure you."

"And what of the… mercenary… you employed to assist you in this endeavor, Danzo?" Koharu asked, still skeptical. "Are you sure he can be trusted not to betray us?"

Danzo simply nodded, closing his eye slowly as his mind began to weave plans far into the future.

"There is no conceivable reason for him to double-cross us, Koharu," he replied confidently. "His target is the Uchiha clan, and not Konoha itself. He lacks the power and the resources to mount an attack large enough to destroy, or even to harm, Konoha in any way."

"Be that as it may, Danzo," Koharu continued, her eyes narrowing, "it is the principle of the thing that has me unsettled. There are some powers in this world that are not to be tampered with, and some people who are absolutely beyond control. But that man is a rare combination of those two things, Danzo: trust him in any way, and it will mean the death of you."

"While I value your concern, Koharu," Danzo said evenly after the Elder had fallen silent, "it is misplaced and unnecessary. I do not have to trust in someone in order to use them, to manipulate them towards a goal of my own choosing. That man is far from the first weapon I have wielded in defense of Konoha, nor will he be the last.

"That is how you must see him, Koharu: as I see him. Nothing more than a blunt weapon, too powerless to act on his own, and requiring the guiding hand of a strong leader. That leader is me."

"And I trust, my friend," Homura said, "that you do not view us the same way you do this mercenary of yours? I'm too old to be used as a weapon, and I certainly don't take kindly to being manipulated."

Danzo chuckled. "Even if you're too old to be used as a weapon, Homura," he replied, "you are certainly still far too sharp to be manipulated. But I would never even dream of such a thing to begin with, my friend: ever since Tobirama was Nidaime Hokage of this village, you two have been the closest allies I know. Tell me, why would I cut off my own two arms, when I have so much left to do?"

The Elders seemed outwardly satisfied with the response, but Homura's heart still remained heavy.

"How much blood, Danzo," he asked, "will we have to cover our hands with, before this is over? How much will this peace of yours cost us?"

"As much as it has to, my friend," Danzo answered firmly. "Whatever the price is, I will gladly pay it to see this village rescued from the Sandaime and Yondaime's blind idealism. That is my promise to you, as the future Godaime Hokage: a promise I intend to keep with my life, if necessary."


"Wait— are you serious, Itachi?"

Itachi finished off the small cup of sake in front of him, leaning back in the booth he was sitting at as he did so.

"Would I joke around about something this serious, Kakashi-san?" Itachi asked back, and the only other ANBU member besides Itachi with a Sharingan let out a long, low whistle.

"Man, I thought I respected the Hokage before," Kakashi Hatake said in an admiring voice, "but doing something like this takes serious guts. Does he realize that the Council could move to impeach him over this?"

"Most likely, yes," Itachi replied as he put down his cup and began to refill it, "but he likely also doesn't care. We both know that if the Hokage is convinced that something is right, he sees it through to the end. No matter how bitter that ending is."

"Indeed he does," Kakashi agreed, and the two ANBU members clinked cups before going to work on the next round of sake.

"So," Kakashi said after he'd killed his shot in one gulp, "do you think this proposal of the Hokage's will actually go through?"

"I would say it has about a fifty-percent chance of success," Itachi said. "And even if it did succeed, there would still be a long way to go before the rest of Konoha stopped looking at the Uchiha suspiciously, and vice-versa.

"Just because my father decides to sign some kind of truce, that doesn't mean that there won't be splinter groups that form in the clan. All it would take would be for one of them to decide to take things into their own hands, and then..." he trailed off, leaving the implication hanging in the air.

"True," Kakashi conceded. "But if we don't try something, I guess we'll never know either way. And if it's any consolation, Itachi," he continued, his voice totally serious in spite of the amount of alcohol he'd drunk, "I'll take any missions that come down targeted at someone with the last name 'Uchiha'."

Itachi finished the second half of his sake shot and shook his head, the red orbs of his Sharingan fading into black as his rigorous self-control finally began to relax.

"Thank you for the offer, Kakashi-san," he said. "But it is my duty, as both an ANBU captain and as a member of my clan, to shoulder that guilt myself."

"Fair enough," Kakashi replied. "But if you ever change your mind, just let me know."

Itachi nodded, getting up from his seat and reaching into one of his flak jacket's pockets to get money for the bill. Kakashi beat him to it, though, putting down money of his own and blocking Itachi's attempt to pay completely. It was a good thing after all, Kakashi mused, that they only wore their jacket-less ANBU uniforms on duty.

"This one's on me, Itachi," he said. "You can get the next round."

"That's what you said last time, Kakashi-san."

"Was it?" the silver-haired ninja replied, feigned confusion clouding his face. "Well, I was probably drunk when I said that, so obviously I didn't mean it. Come on; let's get going. The night is young, and odds are good the Hokage has another mission for us between now and sunrise."

No sooner had the pair stepped out of the bar than Kakashi's prediction came true, and they were met by the unusually grim face of the Yondaime himself.

"Itachi, Kakashi," he said, "sober up. Now."

The soldiers were initially taken aback by the sternness of the order, but a moment later they were forcing the chakra in their bodies to burn off all of the alcohol they had just consumed. The rapid detoxing stung worse than getting stabbed in the back, but the discomfort passed almost as soon as it had come.

"What is it, Hokage-sama?" Kakashi asked, surprised that their commander would come to them himself, rather than sending an intermediary as was standard.

"I met with the Council Elders a few hours ago," Minato explained, "and Danzo. I told them about the deal I'd made with your father, Itachi, and they reacted about how I'd thought they would. But I trust Danzo about as much as I trust the Kyuubi, and I know he's plotting something already."

"Do you want us to go pay him a visit, sir?" Itachi asked, his hand reflexively reaching for the ANBU katana he normally wore when running a mission, only to find it absent. Minato shook his head.

"No," he answered, "I can handle that myself. I need you two to go to the Uchiha village immediately and see what's happening; don't worry about getting into your ANBU uniforms. Do you have your Hiraishin kunai on you?"

"Always," Kakashi said promptly, patting one of the pouches at his waist. Minato gave a small smile.

"Good," he said. "If I don't join up with you in the Uchiha village in ten minutes, use one of them and I'll teleport to you."

Itachi followed his commander's logic, his Sharingan-enhanced eyes widening slightly in surprise.

"You don't honestly think he would try to assassinate you; do you, sir?" he asked, and Minato shrugged.

"Who knows?" he said. "Personally, I wouldn't put anything past Danzo, and it never hurts to be prepared."

Kakashi had let his thoughts wander down a different path, and when he spoke his voice was a rare combination of bitter and resigned; a tone Minato hadn't heard since the day Obito Uchiha had died in battle.

"If you're impeached and banished for this, sensei," he said, "wherever you go, I'll follow. That's a promise."

He didn't give Minato a chance to reply, quickly forming the seal for the Shunshin Jutsu and disappearing soundlessly.

"He said it," Itachi agreed determinately, forming a seal as well. "Good luck, Hokage-sama."

The ANBU captain disappeared with nothing more than a mere whisper to mark him by, leaving Minato standing against the stiff night wind by himself.

"Likewise," he said, before taking a breath and vanishing as well.


Sasuke knew that he should have been asleep; classes started again tomorrow with the new week, after all. But as hard as he tried, the young Uchiha was too excited to get any rest. He'd almost gotten the Gokyaku no Jutsu down; one more week with Iruka-sensei and he was sure it would be finished.

And that wasn't even counting the possibility of the treaty being signed! Sasuke could hardly wait for the time to come when he'd be able to walk around the rest of Konoha without getting odd looks; he would have to write a thank-you letter to the Hokage at some point, but that could wait for tomorrow's study-time.

Sasuke was thrown out of his thoughts by the soft sound of footsteps at the front door, and he sprang up off of his sleeping mat with a smile. It was about time his brother came home! He walked quickly and quietly to the door, careful not to wake up his parents, and slid the wooden panel open.

"Welcome back, nii-sa—" he began, before his voice cut off from shock as he realized that the person he was looking up at had long, pale blond hair, icy blue eyes and was most certainly not his brother.

"Shintenshin no Jutsu!"

The seals and the command were too fast for Sasuke to dodge or avoid, and he felt like he was going to vomit as some kind of strange wave of energy seemed to pass into his body. A second later his vision swam and he blacked out, his body falling to its knees. When his eyes opened again, Sasuke was faced with the bizarre sensation of having absolutely no control over his own body.

What—what's going on!? the young Uchiha tried to shout, panicked, but no voice came from his mouth. The body of the blond-haired ninja in front of him collapsed, but was caught by another ninja wearing some kind of mask before it hit the ground.

"Torune," Sasuke heard himself whisper, "keep that safe. I'm going to take care of the Clan Head and his woman."

"Understood, Fu," the masked ninja replied, unsheathing and holding out the dagger that had been on Fu's back before he'd made the switch into Sasuke's body. Sasuke saw his hand reaching out to grab the blade and tried to stop it, but his hand refused to respond.

No—No! he screamed, realizing what was going to happen. Stop it! Get out of my head!

Shut up, you little brat, a hard voice boomed back at him, cowing Sasuke into silence. You're under my 'Mind-Body Switch' Jutsu now, and nothing you can do will break it. So stop whining, or I'll make you cut your own vocal chords.

Sasuke could only watch, wide-eyed and horrified, as his legs carried him slowly and silently towards his parents' room one step at a time.

Stop… don't do this… he pleaded, but the man controlling his body paid him no mind. Mom—Dad—wake up! Run! RUN AWAY!

What did I tell you about shutting up? the voice said again, before forcing Sasuke's arm to raise the dagger up and cut a line down his right arm. He wasn't in control of his body, but Sasuke could still feel the pain inflicted upon it. He screamed, but his agony only caused the knife to bite deeper.

There's only one way to make it stop, kid, the man's voice said, and I think you know what that is.

Sasuke nodded rapidly and forced his cries of pain down, mentally biting his lip until it bled instead. The man controlling his body, Fu, seemed content with the wordless response and stopped the cut just short of Sasuke's wrist, which would have proven lethal. He did nothing to heal the wound, though, and left the searing pain there as a warning to Sasuke as he walked on.

The young Uchiha watched in silent horror as his body soundlessly opened the door to his parents' room, where they were sleeping side-by-side.

There's no way you can kill one without the other waking up, Sasuke said defiantly, and then they're going to kill you!

You mean they're going to kill you, brat, Fu countered pitilessly. I can end this Jutsu whenever I want, and the only person who will die once I'm out of your body is you.

But regardless, Fu continued, holding the blade of the knife up to the light to reveal several bugs crawling along the blade, neither of them are going to wake up, thanks to these nano-bugs Torune lent me. Lethally poisonous, and small enough to seep in through the pores of your skin. Once they're immobilized, all that will be left is to finish them off.

No—no—no—NO! Sasuke shouted, wanting to control his body more than anything but unable to make even his pinky finger budge. Why are you doing this!? What have we ever done to you!?

But Fu didn't answer, merely touching the tip of his knife to the floor and watching silently as the nano-bugs began to speed toward Sasuke's sleeping parents.

Tell me why! he shouted again, uncaring now for the pain in his arm or any other kind of pain he might receive. Why are you doing this!?

Because it's an order.

The dispassionate words shocked Sasuke to his core: his parents were getting killed on someone's orders? What had happened to the treaty? Who wanted them dead? Why was this happening to him?

Where was his brother!?

Don't do this! Sasuke shouted again, and even the tip of the now bug-free knife cutting back into his wound wasn't enough pain to silence him. Don't! Stop! They're my parents! Why are you making me do this!?

Fu said nothing as he forced Sasuke to walk silently over to his mothers' side and raise the knife high into the moonlight.

Mom! Mom! Wake up!

And his mother did just that.

Sasuke could see the pain and confusion in her eyes from the bugs that were racing along underneath her skin, which only deepened as she saw Sasuke crouching over her holding a knife.

NO! STOP! STOP! the child screamed one last time, pushing with all of his might to try and force the enemy ninja out of his head.

But his hands came down, and the knife came with them.

Again.

And again.

And again.

Any words that Sasuke might have tried to form had melted into an anguished, deranged howl as he could only sit and watch his own hands rend and tear away the flesh and life of the woman he loved most in the world, unable to close his eyes against the pain. Mikoto died with her eyes open, the lifeless black orbs seemingly silently cursing the one who had taken her life.

As Fu moved over to his father's side, Sasuke wished for nothing more than to die. He wanted the earth to open up beneath his feet and drag him down to Hell, where surely any torment that waited for him would be less painful than this. But no god or demon seemed to hear his wish, and Sasuke watched again as fresh blood stained his hands and he became a patricide as well as a matricide.

You will pay for this, Sasuke said at last, in a lifeless voice that was not his own. I will find you, and I will kill you.

Will you, now? Fu shot back, his voice holding no emotion whatsoever. Well, I guess I shouldn't leave you alive then, should I?

Sasuke felt nothing as the knife turned in his hand and raced toward his stomach; not even the tiniest fleeting sensation of fear or relief. He barely even felt the presence of Fu leave him behind a second before the blade impacted, restoring him to his body. It was too late to stop the knife, though, and Sasuke barely flinched as the cold steel buried itself in him.

The pain burned sharply, bright blood flowing out of the wound to mingle with the still-warm blood of his parents.

"Mother, Father," Sasuke said weakly as he felt his hands going cold and his vision fading,

"I'm sorry."


A/N: Whew, that last scene there was draining to write. I felt like a huge asshole for mindscrewing Sasuke so massively, though, if that's any consolation for all of you Sasuke fans out there. Itachi's in for a brutal homecoming, I'll say that much. And Danzo's up to no good, which can't end well at all.

Well, in spite of the downer nature of this chapter, I hope you guys still enjoyed it. Oh, and please review; they're what keep me writing, and now moreso than ever thanks to classes starting up again and my life getting ridiculously busy.